North Yorkshire Police Officers Honoured by Queen

North Yorkshire Police say they're proud to see Chief Constable Lisa Winward and Special Constable Chief Officer Sharron Moverley-Holmes recognised for their services to policing in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Chief Constable Winward and Special Constable Chief Officer Moverley-Holmes both began their careers in the Special Constabulary.

Lisa Winward (pictured) receives the Queen’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service and Sharron Moverley-Holmes receives a British Empire Medal. The Queen’s Birthday Honours lists recognise the achievements and service of people across the UK, from all walks of life.

Both officers began their careers in the Special Constabulary with Lisa joining North Yorkshire Police during her time at university in York, and Sharron whilst training as a solicitor. Special officers are those who give up their time on a voluntary basis to work alongside regular police officers.

Sharron joined North Yorkshire Police as a Special Constable 38 years ago whilst training as a solicitor and was appointed as Chief Officer in 2015.

She is the first Special Constable in North Yorkshire Police to receive a Queen’s Birthday Honour, one of the most significant announcements of civilian and military gallantry awards, along with the New Year Honours.

Lisa  joined Humberside Police as a regular officer in 1994, before transferring to North Yorkshire in 2008, and rapidly rising through the ranks to take the position of Chief Constable in April 2018. Lisa is a national ambassador for volunteering, taking the National Police Chief Council lead for Citizens in Policing  for a number of years and being an inspirational role model for women in policing, as well as national lead for women’s health and the intelligence portfolio.

A compassionate and approachable leader, Lisa always takes the time to ensure that she is available for anyone who needs her support. She has always demonstrated true compassion, visiting victims of crime and underrepresented groups to truly understand their problems and overcome barriers and through her dedication to the public, she has made significant impact both locally and nationally. 

North Yorkshire Police Chief Constable, Lisa Winward, said:

“I’m incredibly proud to receive this honour and want to thank everyone who has supported me throughout my career. I simply wouldn’t be where I am today without all of the people who have helped me, taught me, inspired and motivated me and worked alongside me in the wonderful team that is policing. It is a privilege to be a public servant and a police officer.

“We really champion our volunteers here in North Yorkshire, whether that’s our Special Constables, our Police Support Volunteers or the many individuals who give up their time in different ways to work with us and both of these awards really celebrate that. To receive this award during “national volunteer’s week” makes it very special indeed.

“Sharron has served the community of North Yorkshire for over three decades, and her dedication and commitment has been truly inspirational. Sharron is highly regarded by her colleagues, and in particular her fellow special constables, which is testament to her exceptional leadership style.

“Sharron champions the special constabulary at every opportunity and has been responsible for some notable developments within the force.

“She co-ordinates a number of events for North Yorkshire, including the Knaresborough Bed Race, which is an event that in the past was policed entirely by the Special Constabulary. In addition to this, over the last several years she has organised the ’Steps for Glenn’ challenge, in memory of SC Glenn Goodman who was murdered on duty in 1992.

“Whilst COVID proved a challenge for volunteers, Sharron found new and innovative ways of bringing the special constabulary together, the Steps for Glenn challenge being one such example of this.

“Sharron supports the coaching and development of special constables, particularly underrepresented groups. She recently spoken at the ASCO Virtual Women’s Conference about her own experiences to encourage the future generation of Special Constables.

“As well as her role as SCO, and her full-time role as Citizens in Policing Co-ordinator for the County Command, Sharron also finds time to volunteer outside of policing, and is incredibly proud to be a bellringer at a local church which speaks volumes about how much she values giving back to her local community.

“Sharron embodies the values that are so important to North Yorkshire Police, which are those of courage, compassion and inspiration. We are all very proud of Sharron and would like to congratulate her on this fantastic honour.”

Sharron Moverley-Holmes said:

 “I can’t quite believe that this is true and I’m not sure I will believe it until I see it!

“I’m absolutely overwhelmed to receive a Queen’s Birthday Honour and would like to thank every single person who has supported me and encouraged me throughout my career.

“We have an amazing team of Special Constables here in North Yorkshire and I’m so proud to work with each and every one of them. They give up their free time to help keep our communities safe, working alongside their regular officer colleagues in dealing with a huge range of challenging incidents.

“On Sunday (5 June 2022) a group of Special Constables and I will be walking 30 miles from York to Tadcaster to mark the 30^th anniversary of the death of Special Constable Glenn Goodman who was fatally shot whilst on patrol in Tadcaster.

“We will all walk together to remember Glenn and it is this team work which makes each day in policing worthwhile.”

The Queen’s Birthday and New Year honours lists are each published in the official newspaper of the Crown, The Gazette.